No Quit

Gotta hand it to the Celtics… there is no quit in this team. They had multiple opportunities to roll over and die in Denver… but they were in it right to the end. That ‘end’ was a 124-118 loss at the hands of the Nuggets… who, despite taking 49 free throws to Boston’s 28, hardly went a possession without bitching to the refs about a call.

I’m convinced that Allen Iverson has compromising photos of all of the refs in the NBA. He pushes off half the time and expects a call out of it. Frustrating.

Other quick notes:

-If you missed the end of the 4th quarter… you missed 3 straight possession that went like this: Paul Pierce posterizing the Nuggs and getting the foul, Rajon Rondo 2 hand follow slam, KG 2 hand follow slam. You also missed a goaltending call on Carmelo Anthony on Ray Allen’s 3 point shot. Weird.

– What happened to Ray Allen? He disappeared after scoring 14 in the first quarter. He finished with 20 overall.

– KG was ready to play… but he was in no shape to play. He admitted afterwards that he was winded. Doc had no choice but to limit his minutes.

– Anthony should have fouled out of that game in the 3rd quarter. He kept burying a shoulder into Paul Pierce… a clear offensive foul… but it only got called a couple of times.

– Leon Powe played 21 minutes… and finished with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Damn. Conversely Kendrick Perkins started and played less than 10 minutes.

I thought the Nuggets were done after the Pierce/Rondo/KG dunks. Too bad the refs gave Martin 3 free points right after that on a shitty goaltend call and a bad blocking foul called on Pierce. That sucked.

Alex - February 20, 2008 at 2:36 am

Ray had a chance to change this game with a 3 there after those dunks. I don’t want to get on his case too much… but that would have been a big one.

In order for us to get #17, We need Ray to play to his potenial and be clutch like he was in the All-Star game.

Kev - February 20, 2008 at 7:34 am

I agree with willy on Camby’s blocks, including a “block” in which both of Leon’s arms were raked and Camby didn’t even touch the ball. If we could get calls like that, I’d just line up 2 300-lb defensive linemen, and each time the opposing team’s front line got the ball near the rim, just lay them out and call it a “block.”

lb3 - February 20, 2008 at 8:17 am

Fist off AI just got off my favorite players list because he’s such a little bitch! I always thought of him as being this tough little guy that would take it to everyone.. but from what I saw lastnight he’s more an actor than anything else!

Second Kenyon Martin might just pass Damon Jones on my Favorite Players to hate list! He is so annoying!

Green4Life - February 20, 2008 at 10:20 am

I was thinking the same thing John. With :50 left, Ray in the corner, pumped faked to let the defender fly by, he had an open look. If he hit it, Celts probably could have won.

The officiating in the NBA has been inexcusable. These officials pander to crybaby superstars like AI and Melo and call such uneven games. The NBA really had to address this.

There were some nasty moments last night that had me so fired up: Rondo all game, Pierce’s defense and strong takes, Perk’s rejection, Ray’s shooting in the 1st quarter. There is no Big Three on this team anymore. We should call the Celtics the Big Ten. Every guy on the team, with the exception of Pruitt and Pollard, has hit big shots, taken the charge, shut down his man. It’s almost always a different guy stepping up and elevating the team.

Bill - February 20, 2008 at 10:47 am

i was at the game last night and it was such an exciting – and frustrating – game to watch. it was awesome to be in enemy territory, though celtics pride did not lack for representation last night. the amount of green in the audience was a beautiful site, if you couldn’t tell on tv. if i was a nuggets fan in denver i would be a little pissed that so many fans of the other team showed up.

anyway, the reffing was making me nuts. i think it hurt the celtics last night, but over all i think all teams suffer from it. it’s been so inconsistent this season and it’s turning into a joke. the league desperately needs to do something about it.

the other thing that made the game painful to watch was kg. the c’s looked worse with him on the floor. more stagnant on offense, more disconnected on defense. very frustrating. i suppose doc has to get him minutes so he can work his way back in, though. the team played well in bursts but never locked down on defense the way they have so much this season.

anyway, it was a lot of fun to be at that game, and i hope the rest of this road trip brings more wins.

rvr - February 20, 2008 at 12:51 pm

You live in Denver… or did you just happen to be there and catch the game?